This work analyzes the economic thought of Antoine de Montchrétien in the light of the categories of development economics, which emerged in the aftermath of World War II. In the history of economic thought the reconstructions of economic development analysis have often recognized that mercantilists and development economists have much in common. We will apply this comparison to Montchrétien’s Traicté de l’Oeconomie Politique by analyzing the common ground of development economics and mercantilism in relation to national industrialization and economic growth. There will be also a focus on the "microfoundations" of the Traicté regarding individual behavior and unemployment as crucial factors for the explanation of economic development. We conclude that it is highly significant to find very similar rationales in explaining development processes in such an extensive time frame.

Gualerzi D. and Sunna C. (2016). ‘The rise and decline of development economics in the history of economic thought’ in Sunna C. and D. Gualerzi (eds.) Development Economics in the Twenty-First Century, Abingdon, Routledge: 1-13.